The One Mistake Startup Entrepreneurs Always Make - A Legal Perspective...

"Incentivize your team like crazy and really get everyone rowing in the same direction. That’s what creates a culture and an environment for radical success," partner Michael Esquivel told JD Supra.

October 24, 2013

In the News Profile

JD Supra asked Michael Esquivel, a partner in Fenwick's start-ups and venture capital group, to provide some advice to entrepreneurs based on his experience working with emerging companies. Here's what Esquivel told JD Supra:

"I have two suggested guiding principles that help to solve 90% of the various legal challenges startup entrepreneurs frequently encounter. First: The right place to be aggressive and to take risks is on the game-changing technology and disruptive go-to-market strategy at the core of your company. That’s where you can experiment, get creative and really push the envelope. It’s tempting to translate that same mentality into other areas of the business, but when it comes to legal you’ve got to keep it simple. Be plain – be vanilla whenever possible – a startup generally isn’t the right place to break new ground in the law. That’s just a recipe for frustration and additional expense and unnecessary complication. Second: Within the bounds of reason, be generous to your team. Incentivize your team like crazy and really get everyone rowing in the same direction. That’s what creates a culture and an environment for radical success."